Method of forming standard blanks and a variety of finished units therefrom



Feb. 2, 1943. A. L PARKER METHOD OF FORMING STANDARD BLANKS AND A VARIETY OF FINISHED UNITS THEREFROM Filed July 10, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet l Jg if? Md ,v #frown/Ey@ Feb. 2, 1943. A. L PARKER 2,309,666

METHOD O F FORMING STANDARD BLANKS AND A VARIETY OF FINISHED UNITS THEHEFROM Filed July l()l 1939 2 Sheets-Shen 2 /ZrrofP/wfyq Patented Feb. 2, 1943A METHOD FORMING STANDARD ,BLANKS AND A VARIETY OF FINISHED UNITS THEREFROM Arthur L. Parker, Cleveland, Ohio Y Application July 10, 1939, Serial No. 283,705

Claims.

The present invention is concerned generally with the art of metal working and relates morel particularly to new and useful improvements in a method of forming standard blanks from which individual finished units of various selected del signs may be made.

In the manufacture of tube or pipe couplings, valve cocks and the like, it is customary to form forging blanks for these articles by hammering the end of a heated bar. In the usual forging operation, such a bar.is heatedand then subjected to the following steps: (l) the metal is ballad-up on the end of the bar in a blanking die; (2) it is hammered into finished shape under a shaping die; and (3) the finished part is cut oi. The bar is then returned for re-heating so that this forging bar is heated, partially cooled,v

and re-heated several times. This necessarily involves rapid oxidation each time the bar is' sumes the nished form of the desired product..

In ordinary forging and hot pressing operations, certain parts or sections of the metal receive a greater amount of .working than other sections'. While such uneven working may increase certain physical properties of `those porticular selected design of nished unit which is desired.

One of the principal features of the present invention lies in the fact that the finished units can be made substantially uniform in that the grain and fiber structures thereof are more nearly uniform.

A further feature of the invention lies in the fact that the pre-shaped slug can be rapidly pressed or forged into the standard blank without repeatedly reheating the same so that less oxidation and resultant forming of .scale take place.

The invention still further aims to accomplish the above and other results by a. method which can be performed rapidly and relatively inexpensively.

tions, still it results in a finished product which Y does not possess a uniform grain and fiber structure.

consists generally in forming a -bar having a transverse cross section generally approximating the corresponding cross section of aistandard blank from which the various finished units of selected designs are made. Slugs are cut from the bar and these slugs have a transverse cross section also generally approximating the correv spending cross section of the standard blank.

According to the present invention, the method The above and other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will be hereinafter more fully pointed out.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the preshaped bar from which the slugs are cut.

Figure 2 is a perspective view showing one of the slugs which is cut from the bar.

Figure 3 is a face view showing a T-shaped standard blank which is formed from the slug of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3', but showing the standard blank after it has been worked to provide'a unit of one selected design.

Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 3, butA showing the standard blank after it has been worked to provide a unit of another selected design.

Figure 6 is a` perspective view of another form of pre-shapecl bar from which individual slugs may be cut. 1,/ i

Figure 7 is a perspective view ofone of the slugs out from the bar of Figure 6.

Figure 8 is a face view of a standard blank formed from the slug of Figure .7, this blank serving as a standard from which valve cocks may be made.

Figure 9 is a view similar to Figure 8, but showing the standard blank -after it has been worked to provide a valve cock of one selected design.

Figure 10 is a. view similar to Figure' 8, but

showing a standard blankV after it has been worked to provide a valve cock of another selected design.

in all parts of the bar. The shaping of this extruded bar depends upon the class of nished units which are to be formed. As shown in Figure 1 of the drawings, the bar I0 has a transverse cross section approximating the .corresponding cross section or shape of a tube or pipe fitting in the form of a coupling shown in Figures '4 or 5. The extruded bar I0 has transversely aligned leg portions and an intermediate projecting leg portion which extends at substantially right angles to the transverse leg portions so that the cross section of the bar is substantially T-shaped. The leg portions are illustrated as being provided with ribs so that the bar generally approximates the cross section of the standard blank shown in Figure 3. This bar is then transversely cut to provide individual slugs II which roughly correspond in all dimensions to the external design features of a variety of finished units which may be formed. The uniform grain and fiber structure of the extruded bar remains the same in the slug II.

The slug II is then die-shaped to provide a standard blank I2 having the general exterior design of several selected types of tube couplings. The standard blank I2 also retains the substantially uniform grain and fiber structure of the slug II from which it is formed. The standard blank I2, as illustrated, is substantially T-shaped and includes leg portions I3, I3a, I3b, each leg portion including a non-circular head portion I4, I4a, I4b, respectively, and an outwardly projecting axial portion I5, I5a, I5b, respectively. This standard blank is shown in Figure 3 of the accompanying drawings and is of such a general design shape that various selected forms of finished couplings can be machine worked therefrom.

In Figure 4 of the accompanying drawings, the standard blank I2 has been machine Worked to provide one selected form of finished tube coupling. 'Ihe full lines indicate the finished individual unit and the broken lines indicate the surplus metal of the standard blank which is removed therefrom in the formation of the finished unit. In this selected form of finished unit. the leg portions I3, I 3a have been worked to provide female internally threaded structures I6, I1. These internally threaded portions are counterbored in the customary manner. The leg portion I3b has been machine worked to provide an externally threaded male extension IB. In forming such a unit, the axially aligned leg portions I3, I3a are bored, as at I9, and the leg portion I3b is bored, as at 2D, in order to provide the desired passages through the unit.

In Figure 5 of the accompanying drawings, another selected form of finished coupling unit is shown. In this type of unit, the leg portion I3b has been worked to provide an externally threaded male extension 2l and the leg portion I3a has been worked to provide an internally threaded female counterbored portion 22. The leg portion I3 has been worked to provide a threaded male extension 23 having a seating portion 24. As in the coupling unit shown in Figure 4, the coupling unit of Figure 5 is similarly bored to provide passages therethrough.

In Figures 6 through l0 of the accompanying drawings, the invention is shown as applied to the manufacture of valve cocks or valve housings, and thus illustrate that the invention may be applied in the manufacture of various forms of articles. The bar 38, as shown in Figure 6, is pre-shaped by extruding the same through a suitable shaping die to provide axially aligned leg portions 3|, 32 and intermediate vertically projecting portions in the form of legs 33, 34. As previously described, individual slugs 35 are cut transversely from the bar 30, and these slugs approximate generally the design of the standard blank to be formed. 'I'his standard blank 36 is shown in Figure 8 and includes non-circular aligned leg portions 31, 31a, each of which is provided with a reduced extension 38, 38a, respectively. The upper vertically projecting portion 33 on the slug 35 is formed during the vdie-shaping to provide an upper non-circular projection 39 on the standard blank 36 and the lower projecting portion 34 is shaped to provide a lower circular portion 40 on the standard blank 36.

The standard blank 36 is bored longitudinally through the leg portions 31, 31a and also through the vertically projecting portions 39, 40. As shown in Figure 9, the standard blank has been machine worked to provide a reduced externaLly threaded male extension 4I and a seating portion 42 on the leg 31, while the leg portion 31a has been worked to provide a counterbored female portion 43. The valve operating stem 44 extends through the upper leg portion 39 and is suitably secured to the lower projecting portion 40. The valve operating handle 45 is connected to the stem 44 and moves over the exposed surface of the projecting portion 39.

In Figure 10, there is shown a different form of finished unit. In this form of the invention, the leg portion 31 of the standard blank 36 has been worked to provide an externally threaded male extension 46 and a seating portion 41. The opposite leg portion 31a has been worked to provide an externally threaded male extension 48.

From the foregoing description, it will be understood that individual slugs are cut from an extruded preshaped bar. The bar is shaped so that its cross section approximates the corresponding cross section of a standard blank from which various selected forms of finished units may be made. The individual slugs approximate `in external shaping the external shaping of the standard blank. Each individual slug may be die-shaped in any suitable manner to provide the standard blank. Because of the uniform grain and fiber structure of the pre-shaped slug, it will be readily seen that less working of the metal is required to 4transform this slug into the general design of the standard blank. Thus. the grain and ber structure of the standard blank is maintained more uniform. The general exterior design of the standard blank is such that various selected forms of finished units may be made therefrom by machine working with a minimum amount of movement of the metal so as to maintain the grain and fiber structure substantially uniform even inthe nished unit. The pre-shaped slug may be rapidly transformed into the standard blank with a minimum amount of heating and working so that a rapid method is provided and one which does not result in excessive formation of scale due to oxidation. Similarly, the standard blank may be rapidly transformed into one of a number of selected finished units with a minimum amount of working of the metal.

It is to be clearly understood that minor changes in the manner in which the method is carried out may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of forming finished metal units of various selected designs, which consists in extruding a bar with transversely aligned leg portions and with at least one intermediate projection at substantially right angles thereto whereby the transverse cross section of the bar generally approximates the corresponding cross section of the general design of the iinished units, cutting a slug from the bar transversely thereof, die-shaping the slug to provide a standard blank with non-circular parts around the leg portions and with a projecting portion extending axially of the leg portions beyond the non-circular parts thereon whereby the standard blank more nearly conforms with the general design of the various finished units, and finally-externally and nternally machine working the standard blank to transform the leg portions and the intermediate projection into the exact form of finishedl unit of a selected design.

2. The method of forming finished metal units of various selected designs, which consists in ex truding a bar with a transverse cross section.

generally approximating the corresponding cross section of the general design of the various iinished units, cutting a slug from the bar transversely thereof, die-shaping the slug to provide a standard blank of general T-shape. each leg of the T incuding a non-circular head and a protuberance extending axially of the leg beyond the head, removing certain of the heads and protuberances, or portions thereof, to form a blank of a particular selected design,-and working the remaining portions of the legs to=form from the blank a tube coupling of the selected design.

3; The method of forming finished meta1 units of various selected designs, whichv consists in ,ex-

truding a bar with a transverse cross section gen-- erally approximating the corresponding cross section of the general design of the various finished units, cutting a slug from the bar transversely thereof, die-shaping the slug to provide a standard blank with a plurality of legs, each leg including a non-circular head and a protuberance extending axially of the leg beyond the head. removing the protuberances from one or more of the legs, internally working the head on such leg or legs, removing the non-circular head from the remaining leg or legs, and externally working such remaining leg or legs to form from the standard blank a tube coupling unit of the selected design.

4. The method of forming finished metal units 1 versely thereof, die-shaping the slug to provide a standard blank with aligned legs and intermediate portions projecting substantially at right angles therefrom, each leg having a non-circular portion and a protuberance projecting therefrom, removing portions of the metal on the legs to provide the nished unit of a. selected design,

and providing bores through said legs and through the intermediate right-angled projecting portions which may serve the purpose of receiving a valve operating stem.

5. The method of forming finished metal units of various selected designs, which consists in extruding a bar with leg portions' having longitudinally extending raised portions thereon whereby the transverse cross section of the bar generally approximates the corresponding cross section of the general design of the iinished units, cutting a slug from the bar transversely thereof, dieshaping the slug to provide a standard blank with non-circular parts formed at least partially from and substantially aligned with' said raised portions and surrounding the leg portions and with a projection extending axially of the leg portions beyond the non-circular parts thereon whereby the standard blank more nearly conforms to the 40 general designV of the various nished units, and

finally machine working the standard blank to transform the leg portions and the projections into the exact form of nished unit of a selected design.

ARTHUR L. PARKER. 

